


Lollipops

by excessiveprepositionalphrases



Series: One Tiny Lieutenant Cares Deeply About Julian Bashir [3]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Gen, just some more comfort fic, lollipops work on everyone, no matter the age, written for a friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:15:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22635769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/excessiveprepositionalphrases/pseuds/excessiveprepositionalphrases
Summary: It's an antique idea. Be nice to the doctor, get free candy.
Relationships: Julian Bashir & Original Female Character(s)
Series: One Tiny Lieutenant Cares Deeply About Julian Bashir [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1621273
Comments: 4
Kudos: 24





	Lollipops

**Author's Note:**

> This is for you, astro-gnome! I hope you feel better soon.

“You look unwell, Lieutenant.”

“Mmmmm?”

“You look unwell.”

“…yeah. I…feel unwell,” I confirmed.

Jabara waved a hand vaguely in Julian’s direction, by way of a wordless ‘the Doctor will be with you shortly.’ I nodded, by way of a thank you. None of it was worth saying aloud at this point. It was all well trodden paths and familiar phrases, like a script on the 37th take.

I climbed onto the nearest empty biobed to wait, and partly to watch Julian. He was currently occupied with a small Bajoran child, a little girl with a slightly worried look on her small face and a series of obvious scrapes and bruises on her arms. The woman hovering a few feet away was almost certainly her mother, and she was wringing her hands and watching her daughter, and Julian, with a shaky, eye-darting brand of anxiety.

The little girl, for her own part, seemed to be locked in a wordless standoff with Julian. She didn’t quite seem afraid of him, and was making no effort to run away or remove herself from the situation, but she was watching him like a vulture, her nervous eyes jumping back and forth from his face to his hands and back to his face, like she wasn’t quite sure which she should be more cautious of. Julian was focused on his tricorder, not making eye contact with her. He glanced up at her nervous face now and then, in the moments when she wasn’t looking at his face, but did a dutiful job or pretending he wasn’t watching her as intently as she was watching him. It was much more obvious from a few feet away that Julian was putting on a hint of a performance for the little girl’s benefit – more specifically, he was giving her a chance to make up her mind that he wasn’t a threat before trying to interact with her more directly. After another few moments the little girl’s nervous expression flattened out into something unhappy but calm, and Julian finally spoke to her.

“Does it hurt?” he asked, motioning to her arm. She nodded emphatically. “Can I see?” he asked. She nodded again.

Julian took the little girl’s hand, placing his other under her elbow, and carefully extended her arm, watching her face for signs of pain. She didn’t really react, beyond continuing to watch him.

“Does it hurt more if you move it?” he asked softly.

“No,” came the quiet, almost squeaky response.

Julian turned his attention to the mother. “They’re superficial injuries,” he reassured her. “It’s not even sprained, much less broken. She’ll be fine.”

He said the last part with a reassuring smile.

“Thank you,” the mother responded, her eyes still darting a little between the doctor and her daughter. “I’m sorry to bother you then, it’s just, she seemed so upset, and I was so concerned she’d really hurt herself, I didn’t know what else to do –”

“You did the right thing. You’ll always be doing the right thing by having an injury checked out. I would _much_ rather tell a few extra patients a day that they’re okay than have people assume they don’t need treatment when they really have a major injury.”

He turned his attention back to the little girl, dermal regenerator in his hand, and reached for her arm again. “I just need to fix the bruises, okay?” he said. “I promise it won’t hurt.”

“…okay,” the little girl squeaked, and presented her scratched and bruised arm. Julian passed the instrument over the marks and they slowly disappeared, erasing all trace of the injury.

“There. Good as new.”

The little girl tested the arm and smiled contentedly.

“Would you like a lollipop?” Julian asked, a hint of childish mischief rapidly replacing his professionalism.

“What’s a lollipop?” the girl asked.

“Candy!” Julian answered dramatically.

“Yes please!”

Julian produced a red lollipop from his pocket and handed it to the little girl, who took it greedily and immediately placed it in her mouth. There were a few more nods and thank yous passed around, particularly from the girl’s mother, who seemed impossibly relieved about the situation. Once they were gone I caught Julian smiling to himself as he collected his instruments, and the empty candy wrapper from the ground. He caught my eye as he stood up.

“Don’t tell me you’re hurt too!” he said.

I sneezed, almost as if on cue. Julian was to a sneeze as a moth was to a flame, and was almost on top of me with a tricorder before I could say anything.

“Symptoms?” he asked, still staring at the tricorder.

“Sneezing, coughing, my throat hurts. I think I have a fever. I mean, you’re the doctor so you tell me, but I’m pretty sure.”

“You do. A rather high one at that,” Julian confirmed. He gently pressed a hand up under my chin. I willingly opened my mouth and presented my throat for inspection.

“That’s all I need to see,” he said. “Your tonsils are red and swollen. You, my friend, have streptococcus. Also known as a tonsillitis, strep throat, or scarlet fever, depending on the century.”

“Did we not eradicate that?” I asked weakly.

“Mostly, but a few cases still pop up now and then, especially on earth. You probably contracted it from someone who recently arrived from there.”

“Great. I’m catching ancient diseases. Please tell me this is treatable.”

“Very. I’ll get you a hypo. Antibiotics and something to take the edge off the pain.”

He prepared and administered the medication, and studied my face again.

“That should help you recover, but it’ll take a little while. Is there anything else I can do, in the meantime?”

“…it’s not exactly medicine…”

“That doesn’t matter. Name it.”

“…you could hug me, for a start,” I said softly.

“If only all my patients were so easily treated!” he said with a smile, and pulled me into his arms. I closed my eyes and rested my head on his shoulder as he softly rubbed my back.

“You’ll feel better,” he reassured me. “It might take a couple days, but I promise you will.”

I lingered in the hug for as long as I could before finally untangling myself from his arms.

“I want you back in the morning for a follow up,” Julian said.

“I promise. One more thing?”

“Anything.”

“What’s the story with the…lollipop?”

Julian laughed. “It’s a very old tradition. Be nice to the doctor and get a lollipop. It’s a simple thing, sugar candy on a stick. It was kind of a joke at medical school, but I figured I’d try it out on some real kids. I have to admit, it works incredibly well for cheering up children.”

“And sick Lieutenants…” I whispered under my breath.

“Do you want a lollipop too?” Julian asked affectionately, eyeing me under his brows.

“…maybe.”

He produced another candy from his pocket. I unwrapped it and happily placed in it my mouth.

“Better?” he asked, amused.

“ _So much_ better.”


End file.
